Lynnside Spring
Wilson route 311
Old Sweet
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Sweet Springs is located at the foot of Peter's Mountain in historic Monroe Couinty, West Virginia. It was settled by several prominent families; one of them was the Lewis family, descended from John Lewis, pioneer and Founder of Augusta William Lynn Lewis, son of John the founder of Augusta, came to Sweet Springs, obtained large land grants and settled first at Sweet Chalybeate, once known as Red Springs, about a mile from Sweet Springs. William then built a stone house behind the present mansion called Lynnside. He had planned to develop a town to be called Fontville that would be a center of culture and learning. They built a resort around a spring and developed it as a spa. The mineral water was said to have many healing qualities and it was quite popular as one of the spring resorts frequented by the fashionable people of the day. Many famous people were said to have come there, among them Jerome Bonaparte, Robert E. Lee, George Washington and numerous other notables of that time. The resort, known as "Old Sweet" did well until the Civil War intervened. After automobiles became more numerous, the spas lost much of their popularity and Old Sweet was eventually sold to pay off some indebtedness of the owners. It changed hands several times before being bought by the State of West Virginia as a T.B Sanitorium. That venture was not successful, so it was turned into a home for the elderly and was operated for several years until it was closed in the early nineties, operated briefly by Monroe County as a drug rehabilition facility. After a short period, that project was abandoned and the buildings stood empty and in declining condition before being bought by some investors who plan to restore it to its former position as a fashionable resort for people looking for beautiful surroundings, with a choice of many popular and healthful activities and gourmet meals
